Collapsible container package for concentrates



Nov. 24, 1970 H, D. WAKEFIELD COLLAPSIBLE CONTAINER PACKAGE FOR CONCENTRATES File d May 21, 1968 INVENTOR.

United States Patent U.S. Cl. 99171 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An inexpensive collapsible and unfoldable sealed container package for concentrates which is substantially flat and which may 'be opened and unfolded to permit ready conditioning of the concentrate directly within the unfolded opened package by introduction of an additive Without transfer to another container comprising a foldable open-ended container body provided with sealing removable end closures and within which an open-mouthed expansible pouch or envelope designed to receive and retain the concentrate is mounted, the lips of the mouth of the pouch or envelope being permanently secured to inner walls of the container. The pouch is of pliant, liquid-proof material and inert to its prospective contents which can be collapsed to small compass together with its concentrate content within the collapsed enclosure defined by the flat folded container and end closures and retained therein indefinitely prior to use. When the concentrate is to be used, the end covers are removed and the container unfolded, the pouch then drops automatically through the bottom end of the opened unfolded container to an expanded larger volume. Thereafter, an additive such as a diluent necessary to condition the concentrate to desired useful state is introduced directly into the expanded pouch to be mixed with the concentrate therein via the upper open end of the container without any necessity for transfer of the concentrate to another larger container. The mixing may then be effected directly in the expanded pouch and the so-conditioned concentrate then poured as desired from the open upper end of the unfolded container which thereafter may be discarded.

FIELD OF INVENTION The invention relates to the packaging art and particularly to the art of packaging concentrates that require conditioning with additives such as diluents in situ at the time of use. It involves the provision of a novel flatlyfolded container package for concentrates which simplifies the problem of conditioning with additives such as diluents at the time of use and eliminates all need for transfer of the concentrate from the original opened container package in order to effect its required conditioning for use. It embodies a substantially flatly-folded container package including therein an expansible pouch or envelope which in a normal unexpanded or partially collapsed condition is confined between walls of a flatly folded container body and which is designed to retain the concentrate within small compass within the confines of the flatly-folded container body and which upon unfolding of the latter will permit the pouch or envelope to expand outwardly automatically through an open end of said body to a required larger volume and permit direct introduction from the other or upper open end of the body into the expanded pouch or envelope of a desired conditioner or additive such as a diluent in an amount sufiicient to effect required conditioning of the concentrate still therein for use, Without any necessity for transfer of the concentrate from the pouch or envelope or opened package to a larger container. The

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concentrate and additive then may be subjected to turbulence to enhance mixing in said expanded pouch or envelope and then used or poured directly from the expanded pouch or envelope for use as needed and the opened package itself then discarded by the user.

Packaging technology has now advanced to a state wherein an abundance of products on the market which are now marketed are sent to the ultimate user in a concentrated form, either powdered, liquid or semi-liquid and the user must introduce additives such as diluents to the concentrate to put it into a desired state of use. Perhaps the best known example of products which are shipped for ultimate use in a concentrated form is in the food industry where frozen juices or powdered gelatin products, for example, are sold to the consumer for dilution in situ by the latter to desired strength for use. Sometimes, even such existing packaging provides unduly large volume to the packaged product.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART In using such concentrates, no matter what they may be, the ultimate user heretofore has had to transfer them from the relatively small original package to a larger container so that the necessary additives required to produce the final useful product could be introduced and mixed therewith. This is and has been generally a bothersome task as it involves transferring the concentrate to another container, using in some instances the original small container to add measured quantities of additive to the transferred concentrate in the larger container. Frequently, too, particularly if the concentrate is frozen, it is too viscid to permit ready transfer to the larger container without spooning or the like. Often, too, a second larger volume container is not readily available. Thus, conversion of the concentrate to proper condition for required use or consumption has been and is irksome and often difficult. Also, even concentrate packaging heretofore has required larger volume than is actually necessary.

It is thus apparent that if a container package for concentrate were to be provided that could store and permit shipment in substantially a flat condition of a given amount of a concentrate indefinitely, and upon being opened could be made readily expansible to receive the amount of the additive necessary for conditioning to the finally useful product, the concentrate in such opened container could be directly mixed in the original opened container package, thus eliminating any need for transfer of such concentrate to a larger mixing container, such a container package would find widespread demand and use. This would be especially true if the original container were sufficiently flat and rigid as is required in so many shipping situations to utilize the smallest space possible and to withstand collapse, particularly when the original sealed containers are shipped and stored in a piled or stacked condition one on top of another before acquisition by the ultimate consumer.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Therefore, it is a principal object of the present invention to improve the art of packaging concentrates by the provision of a container package which can store indefinitely and permit shipment in a minimum of space in substantially flat condition of a selected volume of a concentrated product safely and indefinitely prior to use which upon opening of such package in situ can be unfolded so as to provide an expanded volume for the concentrate to which the necessary additive such as a diluent can be directly introduced upon such opening, thereby eliminating all need for transferring the concentrate from its original container package to a larger volumed container for mixing with it of the necessary additive to prepare or condition it for use.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a container package storable in substantially flat condition which can be opened for use and whose volume will expand automatically upon being opened and unfolded, the original container being rigid enough to permit flat storage and stacking or piling with other like container packages during transportation and storage prior to actual use by the ultimate consumer.

Yet a further object of the present invention is to provide a container package for concentrates whose volume can expand upon being opened to permit direct addition thereto of additives such as diluents and which will be economical to make and use and be of simple construction and be readily discardable after being opened.

Briefly, in accordance with the present invention, the foregoing and other objects are accomplished by providing a container package comprising a foldable container body comprising a plurality of foldable panels that may be unfolded to tubular container shape and having removable end closures within which a flexible expansible inner pouch or envelope whose mouth is attached to the inner side walls of panels of the body may be retained in unexpanded or partially collapsed form and which pouch or envelope may contain a measured quantity of a concentrated product in the enclosure defined between the folded together panels and the removable top and bottom end closure members defining the container package all in substantially flat form. After opening of the container package by removal of its end closures and unfolding of its panels to tubular shape, the pouch or envelope will expand and drop automatically through the open bottom of the unfolded tubular body, its mouth portion being securely held by said side walls of the panels of the latter and expand to its full volume which is substantially larger than its initial volume in the closed package and preferably of relatively measured ratio in respect thereto so that thereafter, additive such as a diluent may be poured into the now-expanded volume of the pouch to effect desired conditioning of the concentrate product to useful state without necessity for any transfer to a second larger container. The preferably measured ratio of expanded volume to original envelope or pouch volume insures that introduction of the additive will be limited to the amount normally required to condition the concentrate for use.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Further objects, features and aspects of the present invention will become apparent from the following specification and drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a closed, sealed, flat container package embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2. is a sectional view along line 22 of the embodiment of FIG. '1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view along line 33 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the embodiment of the present invention in its open, unfolded and expanded condition;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line 55 of FIG. 4 of the embodiment of FIG. 4 shown receiving additive necessary to condition the concentrate to desired state; and

FIG. 6 is a plan view of a blank for forming the container body of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to the drawings now, and particularly to FIGS. 1-3, one embodiment of the container package in sealed substantially flat condition is shown. The container package 10 as shown is in sealed, filled and folded condition and includes a first side panel member 11, an end panel member 12 integral and adjacent first side panel member 11 and joined thereto along a transverse scoring line 13, a second side panel 14 joined to the first 4 end panel 12 along a transverse scoring line 15 and a second end panel 16 joined to the first side panel 11 along a transverse scoring line 17. The second side panel 14 is designed to be joined to the second end panel 16 by a tab 18 joined to the second side panel 14, a transverse scoring line 19 between them. The tab 18 is secured as by glueing to the panel 16. These panels may be of cardboard, corrugated board or any other suitable material and the blank B used in their formation is seen in FIG. 6. This enables the panels to be folded together in flat parallel relationship as seen in FIGS. 2 and 3 and to be moved relative to each other about the transverse scoring lines to form an open tubular body seen in FIGS. 4 and 5. End closure members 20 and 21 are mountable over the end edges of the folded-together panels and may be retained in sealed condition thereon as by conventional tear strips 22 and 23 to seal the contents contained between the folded panels. Of course, if desired, other conventional ways may be used to close off the top and bottom edges of the folded panels. As seen in FIG. 2, a flexible bag or envelope member 24 preferably made of a collapsible flexible material such as plastic, such as polyethylene, has lips defining its open mouth attached suitably at 25 to the inner walls of the panels. Collapsible bag member 24 has a substantially larger volume than that of its collapsed condition which collapsed condition exitsts when the panels are folded together to the condition of FIG. 2 being then in compact form when lying inside and between the unfolded panels. As can be seen in FIG. 2, the container 10 when its panels are folded has substantially flat thin configuration.

A selected amount of concentrate C is placed in bag pouch or envelope 24 when it is in collapsed condition (FIG. 2) within the folded container 10 and the latter is then sealed by the end closures 20 and 21, and tear strips 22 and 23. Thus, the folded container 10 will then contain the concentrate C sealed therein and in this state may be stored indefinitely and shipped and stored at destination in flat compact condition for sale to the ultimate consumer. To use the latter, the consumer will pull off the tear strips 22 and 23 and remove the top and bottom closures 20 and 21 and then manipulate and apply force to oppositely located scoring lines of the sidewalls of the container so it will ultimately assume the open shape seen in FIG. 4. This will greatly expand the volume of bag, envelope or pouch 24 from its compact condition in the folded container 10. Since the bottom closure has been removed, the bottom of the bag, pouch or envelope 24 will freely drop downwardly through the open bottom of container 10 as seen in FIGS. 4 and 5 due to the weight of the concentrate C therein and expand to a much larger volume than its original compacted volume in the folded container 10, but because of the attachment of the lips of its mouth to the container panels this will prevent separation of the envelope from the container panels. The additive such as a diluent required to condition the concentrate for use may then be introduced into the container 10 as seen in FIG. 5 from its now-open upper end to achieve the final product. If there is some difliculty in mixing the additive and the concentrate the part of envelope or bag member 24 that now protrudes from the bottom of open container 10 may be squeezed to provide turbulence to facilitate mixing. When mixing is complete, the conditioned product may be poured from the open upper end of the container for use, or if a gelatin product, it even may be left therein to congeal in usual manner in the expanded envelope. It is clear that introduction of the additive for conditioning does not require transfer of the concentrate to another larger container.

The concentrate C which the folded compact container is to store can be either edible or inedible, frozen or liquid, solid or powdered. Because the container of the present invention can be folded to a package of relatively fiat condition it will not utilize much space during shipping or storage adding to its marketing attractiveness. The ratio of volume of bag member envelope or pouch 24 when in a compact condition in the folded container and its volume when expanded through the bottom of the container can be so adjusted relative to each other that the expanded volume will be just suflicient for receiving the volume of additive necessary to condition the concentrate to the final product. This will eliminate any necessity for measuring the amount of the additive to be introduced into the expanded bag member, envelope or pouch.

While a particular embodiment of the present invention has been disclosed, it is to be understood that various modifications are possible and are contemplated within the scope of the appended claims. There is no intention, therefore, of limitation to the exact abstract or disclosure herein presented.

What is claimed is:

1. A foldable and unfoldable container package for a concentrate which requires conditioning by the addition of an additive for actual use comprising a tubular open-ended part defined by joined panels with scoring between adjacent panels so that they may be moved relative to each other from a folded to unfolded state, a removable top end closure member and removable bottom end closure member both removably and sealably mounted respectively on opposite ends of said part and in enclosing relation therewith when the panels are in folded condition, collapsible open-mouthed pouch means attached to Walls of said panels for defining in partially collapsed state a first limited retaining volume lying within said part between said folded-together panels and said top and bottom end closure members when said top and bottom closure members are mounted in sealed closing position on the ends of said part, said means being expansible and movable outwardly through the bottom end of said part when said panels are moved to open condition to define a larger second volume in expanded state and removable means to retain said end closure members removably on said tubular part and in sealing relationship thereto prior to opening of said package, said last-named means comprising separate tear strips for each of said end closure members.

2. A foldable and unfoldable container package in accordance with claim 1 wherein the plastic material of said pouch remains flexible at all temperatures of concentrate therein and is expansible from a selected limited volume to a larger selected volume when said package is opened so that additive may be introduced into it directly for mixture with the concentrate therein in a selected ratio relative to the volume of the original concentrate.

3. A foldable and unfoldable container package in accordance with claim 1, wherein the panels of said tubular part are thin-walled relatively rigid members joined by transverse scoring to permit folding and unfolding movement of the panels relative to each other.

4. A foldable and unfoldable container package in accordance with claim 1 wherein said panels have substantially rectangular shape.

5. A foldable and unfoldable container package according to claim 1, wherein the panels of said tubular member are composed of relatively stiff material and each is generally rectangular in shape which in folded condition lie closely adjacent to each other and which are unfoldable along said scoring to form parallelopiped-like supporting structure for said pouch means in the unfolded condition of said panels.

6. A foldable and unfoldable container package according to claim 1, wherein said pouch means is axially aligned with said tubular member and the mouth portion of said pouch means is affixed to the inner periphery of said tubular member near an end thereof.

7. A foldable and unfoldable container package in accordance with claim 1, wherein said flexible pouch means is of plastic material inert to its contents and has an open mouth whose lips are secured to the panels of said tubular part adjacent an end thereof.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,180,841 11/1939 Vogt. 2,493,337 1/1950 Buttery. 2,863,305 12/1958 Shepherd. 3,373,917 3/1968 CoX.

JOSEPH R. LEGLAIR, Primary Examiner L. SUMMER, Assistant Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 

